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I use Microsoft Outlook on a desktop and a laptop. I download e-mail, add contacts, and revise calendar entries in each. At the end of the day, after connecting them in a peer-to-peer network, I would like to synchronize my calendar, contacts, e-mail, and so on. What does this?

The reaction out of Redmond seems to be, "Why in the world would you want to do that?" Outlook was definitely not designed to have its data shared and easily accessible on multiple computers unless you're running an Exchange mail server.

Microsoft doesn't make sharing data easy, but there are tools and techniques you can use to get most of the way there. Vaita's OsaSync (download, $24.95) lets you keep Outlook contacts in sync across a network. The program adds a menu to Outlook for controlling synchronization and regularly looks for changes made to the contacts on other machines. You can set OsaSync to keep all contacts in sync or just specific records. OsaSync can't currently handle any other types of data, but according to the company's Web site, Vaita expects to have a version that syncs mail available by the time you read this and plans another version that adds calendar support in October. (Vaita, www.vaita.com. )

QSynchronization for Outlook 1.4 (49 euros) lets you share information in a variety of folders, but to use it, Outlook can be open on only one machine at a time. Also, the program is not especially well documented and is riddled with inconsistent spellings and error messages in German. (Quester, www.outlookfolders.de. )

If you use POP3 e-mail, the best way to keep mail synced is to leave it on the ISP's server so that both computers can access it. If you use IMAP4 Internet mail, synchronization is built in.

There are intermediary Web services, such as ReadySyncGo! and Yahoo!, that let you sync calendar and contacts on multiple machines. In addition, a copy of the data is stored online and accessible from any browser.

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